The Cincinnati Ballet is a ballet company founded in 1958 in Cincinnati, United States.

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Founding

Cincinnati Ballet is presently celebrating its 2008-09, the 45th anniversary season. The first official auditions were in 1963 at the YMCA, where 41 dancers were chosen from the 200 hopefuls who auditioned. Debut performances took place at the University of Cincinnati’s Wilson Auditorium in 1964 and 1965. The repertoire consisted of ballets choreographed or staged by Oleg Sabline, Tania Karina, William Dollar, and John Taras. Sabline, a European-trained dancer whose career had taken him through Europe and the United States, was appointed director for the first performances. He had originally come to Cincinnati to teach ballet and stage the classics at The College-Conservatory of Music.

When organizing founders Nancy Bauer, Virginia Garrett and Myrl Laurence first chartered the company as “Cincinnati Civic Ballet” in 1958, it was a definite newcomer compared to the other major arts organizations in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Cincinnati Art Museum was founded in 1886, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra in 1895, and the Cincinnati Opera in 1920.

Early history

In 1966, the directorship passed on to a visionary young man named David McLain. He also headed the Dance Division of CCM. CCM gave the young company great advantages. There was studio space for classes and rehearsals, access to talented students, and the use of Wilson Auditorium for performances. As the organization outgrew the profile of a non-professional civic company, McLain’s vision grew more ambitious. The company was re-named “Cincinnati Ballet Company” in 1968 and gained the talented Carmon DeLeone as music director.

By 1970, true professional status was achieved when ten salaried dancers were hired. Soon CCM faculty member James Truitte began to train dancers in the contemporary technique created by the American choreographer Lester Horton. As the company dancers became proficient in Horton technique, they began to perform Horton’s choreography. As a result, Cincinnati Ballet Company earned national recognition for keeping this historic work alive.

However, by the mid-70’s, CBC was still first and foremost a ballet company with classical works in the repertoire, including Les Patineurs, Pas de Quatre and variations from The Sleeping Beauty, along with two Balanchine ballets, Concerto Barocco and Serenade. Performances now took place at the Taft Theatre and tours were added, not only in Ohio, but also in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and at New York City’s Dance Festival in 1975.

One of the most exciting events of that time was The Nutcracker, which premiered in 1974 at Music Hall. Frisch’s Restaurants sponsored the performances and, to the everlasting gratitude of ballet audiences, has continued to do so. Today Frisch’s presents The Nutcracker is a Cincinnati tradition.

Beginning in 1978, regular repertoire performances were also held at Music Hall, and the schedule expanded from three series to five by 1980. More changes occurred during that decade. The company’s name was shortened to “Cincinnati Ballet,” and in 1983 a sister-city arrangement had begun with New Orleans to further increase performing opportunities.

David McLain’s vision and dedication certainly succeeded in making the company a truly professional one and he was greatly missed when he died in 1984. The Board of Trustees turned to the legendary Frederic Franklin for guidance, grateful to him when he took the helm as interim director.

A permanent artistic director, Ivan Nagy, was appointed in 1986. His tenure brought even greater changes. First, the company moved out of CCM, although it was still designated the official school. It was Nagy’s intention to have Cincinnati Ballet stand alone as a professional company. The company continued to perform at Music Hall but rehearsals were now in the Emery Building. A Hungarian native who had danced all over the world, Nagy knew many foreign dancers, and brought a number of them to Cincinnati. The arrival of highly experienced dancers began to raise the company to a new standard of performance. The company expanded to include five principals, nine soloists and twenty-three corps members. It joined the American Guild of Musical Artists and added the SCPA Dance Department, along with the CCM Children’s Dance Division, as “feeder” institutions to provide apprentices and child performers.

A new Nutcracker, choreographed by Ben Stevenson of the Houston Ballet, was also performed every year in Knoxville as part of another sister-city arrangement. Repertoire included a full-length La Sylphide and Balanchine’s Four Temperaments as well as pieces by contemporary choreographers such as Andre Prokovsky, Mauricio Wainrot and Ronald Hynd.

But these times soon came to an end. Nagy left in 1989 and three artistic directors came and went in quick succession. Richard Collins was the first. A British-trained dancer, and a director of great promise, he was tragically killed in a car accident. Nigel Burgoine succeeded him in 1992 and Peter Anastos in 1994. During his two years in Cincinnati, Anastos created the very successful ballet Peter Pan with an original score by Carmon DeLeone. The ballet (now with the 2001 choreography by Septime Webre) is set to be performed in 2009, which also marks DeLeone’s 40th anniversary with Cincinnati Ballet.

Later history

The 1990’s were memorable for a number of special events. Through the great generosity of the Kaplan and Budig foundations, a new and permanent home was built for the company. The Cincinnati Ballet Center on Central Parkway at Liberty Street opened in 1994. The Otto M. Budig Academy of Cincinnati Ballet was launched in 1996. At last, offices, dance studios, a training school, wardrobe/costume storage, and rehearsal space were all in the same complex. The intimate Mickey Jarson Kaplan Performance Studio was added in 2005.

Changes continued. The Aronoff Center for the Arts became the permanent home for the repertoire series of performances and a number of spectacular ballets were acquired. “Americana” ballets such as Agnes DeMille’s Rodeo, and modern dance pieces by Paul Taylor challenged the dancers and intrigued audiences. In 1996, in an exciting premiere, Balanchine’s full-length Jewels, was performed by the company. Other contemporary choreographers whose contributions were memorable included Kirk Peterson, Kathryn Posin, Stanton Welch and Val Caniparoli, in addition to Nigel Burgoine and Victoria Morgan, who was appointed artistic director in 1997.

Artistic Director and CEO Morgan, whose tenure continues at the present time, has honored the Cincinnati Ballet tradition of performing not only new works, but also keeping the historic repertoire alive and vibrant. An outstanding example was the tribute to Frederic Franklin and the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo in 2002. The ballets presented were Devil’s Holiday by Frederick Ashton, plus the third movement of Seventh Symphony (music by Beethoven), and Gaîte Parisienne, choreographed by Leonide Massine. Franklin’s reconstruction of these historic pieces was inspiring. The New York Times called the production one of the top ten dance events in the country that season.

Franklin restaged the two remaining extant movements from Seventh Symphony two seasons later, aided by Cincinnati Ballet’s Principal Ballet Mistress and former Cincinnati Ballet dancer Johanna Bernstein Wilt, who researched and recreated all three Seventh Symphony movements from the original 16 mm film with coaching from Franklin.

Also of note were two groundbreaking collaborations between Cincinnati Ballet and BalletMet Columbus. Together, to great acclaim, the companies presented Balanchine’s Jewels (2003) and Stars and Stripes (2006).

Another important event in 2008 was the appointment of Devon Carney, a former principal dancer with Boston Ballet, as associate artistic director. In addition to providing his own memorable choreography for six pieces, Carney has restaged and added fresh choreography to great full-length classics such as Giselle and Swan Lake during his five previous years as ballet master-in-chief.

Performers

Cincinnati Ballet is now made up of dancers from all over the United States and all over the world. They are an exciting group of versatile performers who approach both traditional and contemporary roles with individual flair and sensational technique. They have now performed at The Aronoff Center for over a decade to large, enthusiastic audiences and continue to tour in far-off American cities, including Anchorage, Alaska, and in Europe as well. During the 2007-08 season, Morgan negotiated a performing partnership with The Suzanne Farrell Ballet, which resulted in the presentation of a joint program both at The Aronoff Center and Washington, D.C.’s Kennedy Center in 2008. For this, our dancers received glowing reviews.

Before ending this continuing history of the company, a mention of dancers from earlier years through present times seems appropriate. Their names evoke vivid memories for so many of our audience. They include Colleen Geisting, Patrick Hinson, Richard Early, Cynthia Ann Roses, Kimberly Smiley, Donna Grisez, Roman Jasinski, Sara Nieto, Melissa Hale, Patricia Rozow, Charles Flachs, Suzette Boyer, Meridith Benson, Rebecca Rodriguez, Trinidad Vives, Marcello Angelini, Victoria Hall, Daniela Buson, René Micheo, Karyn Lee Connell, Alexei Kremnev, Anna Reznik, Kristi Capps, Cervilio Amador, Anthony Krutzkamp, Janessa Touchet, Adiarys Almeida, Joseph Gatti and Dmitri Trubchanov. But the fact is that all of Cincinnati Ballet’s performers through the years, both named and unnamed, have made lasting and indelible contributions to help Cincinnati Ballet reach 45 years with pride and accomplishment.